Lifejacket pouch

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a lifejacket pouch in the form of a pocket ( 3 ), located beneath the scat surface of an aircraft seat, with wall pieces ( 17 ) which move relative to each other and which may be fixed in a position adjacent to each other along an opening edge ( 7 ) of the pocket ( 3 ), by means of a closure device which comprises at least a pair of retaining elements to generate a closing force acting between the wall pieces at the opening edge ( 7 ). Said elements may be overcome by means of a manually-operated tear-strip ( 13 ), for opening the pocket ( 3 ), comprising a tie strip ( 11 ), acting on the pair of retaining elements. A combination of a press-stud closure and a tie strip ( 11 ) on the tear strip, through which the above extends, is disclosed which offers a high closure security and a possibility of opening particularly simply and rapidly with a good closing force, whereby the at least one pair of retaining elements comprise a press-stud closure ( 21, 23 ) and the tie strip ( 11 ) has an opening ( 25 ) through which the press stud closure ( 21, 23 ) extends.

[0001] The invention relates to a life jacket pouch in the form of a pocket located beneath the seat surface with wall components which move relative to each other and which may be fixed in position adjacent to each other along an opening edge of the pocket by means of a closure device which comprises at least one pair of retaining elements to generate a closing force acting between the wall elements, which force may be overcome in order to open the pocket by means of a manually operated opening strip which has a tie strip acting on the pair of retaining elements.

[0002] Life jacket pouches of the kind described above are in use throughout the world in aircraft made by the most famous manufacturers. The principal requirements to be set for life jacket pouches are that the opening edge of the pouch be reliably closed under normal conditions so that the life jacket it contains is available for use intact, and that it be possible for the seat occupant to open the closure device rapidly and by especially simple means when the need for use or an emergency arises. Conventional life jacket pouches do not fully meet these requirements. In the currently customary design, in which the closure device has a flat fastener provided on the opening edge of the pouch in the form of a pad and hook strip through which the tear flap extends, while the pouch itself can be rapidly and easily opened when necessary, the closure device does not afford adequate certainty that the pouch will not be opened unintentionally.

[0003] DE-A-199 44 619 discloses an aircraft passenger seat for which provision is made for mounting on it a life jacket and upholstery components enhancing seating comfort. In that the mounting option is represented by at least one upholstery component and that the life jacket is designed as an integral component of the respective upholstery component located on the top of the leg rest, the upholstery in question is replaced by the life jacket, so that weight reduction relative to conventional solutions is effected, this having a favorable effect on the payload situation in the aircraft. As a result of simple spreading of the seat occupant's legs the life jacket integrated into the aircraft passenger seat as an upholstery component is rapidly accessible and the disclosed solution in question provides adequate safety from unintentional opening of the folded life jacket. The solution in question represents another modern concept of integration of a life jacket into the aircraft passenger seat, but since a leg or foot rest is necessarily provided in this solution, the latter normally applies only to aircraft passenger seats in the first-class or business section.

[0004] On the basis of this state of the art the object of the invention is to develop a life jacket pouch such that the closure device provides adequate safety from unintentional opening of the pouch, this closure device nevertheless being designed so that the life jacket pouch can be easily and rapidly opened when necessary.

[0005] In the case of a life jacket pouch of the type indicated in the foregoing this object is attained in that at least one pair of restraining elements have a press-stud closure and in that the tie strip has an opening through which the press-stud closure extends.

[0006] The combination claimed for the invention, consisting of a press-stud closure and a tie strip through which the press-stud of the opening strip extends, provides both the desired reliability of closure because of the closing force made available by the press-stud closure and the possibility of especially simple and rapid opening. In that the press-stud closure extends through an opening in the tie strip, and the tie strip accordingly is positioned between the interacting half-elements of the press-stud closure, the snap connection of the half-elements when load is applied to the tie strip is definitely guaranteed.

[0007] The design claimed for the invention thus complies fully with the approval guidelines laid down by the standard world authorities for aviation equipment, such as the FAR, Part 25, issued by the United States FAA.

[0008] If in the case of advantageous exemplary embodiments one half-element of the press-stud closure is not rigidly connected to the front spar of the seat extending in the transverse direction but rather is movably suspended from the spar by being mounted on a mounting link anchored to the spar, a particular additional advantage is derived from the fact that, because of the restriction of mobility by the mounting link reliable opening of the snap connection is guaranteed independently of the direction in which the seat occupant pulls the opening strip. As a result, the life jacket pouch claimed for the invention also meets criteria of more demanding requirements set by renowned aircraft equipment manufacturers, such as the requirement that it be possible to open the closure device with certainty if the seat occupant operating the opening strip pulls the strip in directions which lie within an angular range of at least 90°, specifically 45° above and 45° below the horizontal plane of the seat. In the case of the movable connection to the spar in question, the closure device can be easily and reliably opened when the tie strip is pulled in directions over a very wide range of angles, so that rapidity and ease of access to the life jacket are ensured.

[0009] If in the case of advantageous exemplary embodiments a wall element of the pouch is mounted in the area of the opening edge of the pouch below the spar, there may be mounted, on both sides of the flexible strip supporting the half-element of the press-stud closure, flat adherent elements on the spar which form a flat fastening, together with opposite half-elements mounted on the opening edge of the accessible other wall element of the pouch. The retention force of this fastening is designed so that the adherent elements are disengaged when the strap opens the snap connection on the press-stud closure head and the half-elements of the latter are moved away from each other.

[0010] The invention is described in detail in what follows with reference to the drawing, in which

[0011]FIG. 1 presents a highly simplified diagram of a partial cross-section of a life jacket pouch of the state of the art mounted below the front spar of a seat;

[0012]FIG. 2 a highly simplified diagram similar to that of FIG. 1 illustrating the design of one exemplary embodiment of the life jacket pouch claimed for the invention;

[0013]FIG. 3 a highly simplified perspective view of the exemplary embodiment of the life jacket pouch when opened, less the life jacket pack in the pocket;

[0014]FIGS. 4 and 5 highly simplified perspective views of the exemplary embodiment of the life jacket pouch in the closed state, the various directions of pull in the event of manual operation of the opening strip for the purpose of opening being illustrated; and

[0015]FIG. 6 a highly simplified detached perspective view of the life jacket pouch when open, with life jacket pack inside the pocket.

[0016]FIG. 1 shows only the area of a pocket 3 of a closure device 1 of a life jacket pouch corresponding to the state of the art into which the life jacket pack is inserted; the pouch is mounted below a spar 5 which is in the form of a bracing tube which extends in the transverse direction along the front side of an aircraft passenger seat not shown. The pocket 3 is closed along its opening edge 7 by means of a surface fastener 9 having interacting fastening elements in the form of a padded strip and a hooked strip.

[0017] A tie strip 11 of an opening strip which has on its free end a grip loop 15 for manual operation by the seat occupant extends into the interior of the pocket 3 through the padded strip and hooked strip of the fastener 9. If the opening strip 13 is operated by pulling the grip loop 15, the tie strip 11 of the fastener extending between the fastening elements of the fastener 9, which tie strip 11 is connected inside the pocket 3 to the life jacket pack (not shown), effects lifting of the fastening elements, that is, opening of the pocket 3.

[0018]FIG. 2, which covers an area similar to that of FIG. 1 on the spar 5 of an aircraft passenger seat, illustrates the design of the embodiment example to be described here of the life jacket pouch claimed for the invention. FIG. 2 shows the pocket 3 having the flexible wall elements partly opened but with no life jacket pouch in it; a wall element 17 of the pocket 3, is shown in the drawing positioned below, at the bottom, with its opening edge 7 spaced at a distance from the spar 5. FIG. 3 illustrates a similar situation, one in which the pocket 3 has been fully opened, also with no life jacket pouch present in the pocket 3. The position of the life jacket pouch 19 in the pocket 3 after opening is shown only in the drawing in FIG. 6.

[0019] As is to be seen the most clearly in FIGS. 2 and 3, the closure device of the pocket 3 has on the opening edge 7 a press-stud fastener with press-stud half-elements 21 and 23 which may be brought together to form a snap connection. The opening strip 13 has in the transitional area between outer grip loop 15 and tie strip 11 an opening 25 through which extends press-stud fastener 21, 23; see FIG. 3 in particular, which shows that the press-stud half-element 21 extends through the opening 25 in the tie strip 11. In the illustration in FIG. 2 the tie strip 11 is shown in a position in which the other press-stud half-element 23 extends through the opening 25.

[0020] If the pocket 3 on the opening edge 7 is closed, that is, if the bottom wall element 17 supporting the press-stud half-element 21 has been positioned near the spar 5, the press-stud closure is closed by insertion of the half-element 21 into the press-stud half-element 23 suspended from the spar 5. As is to be seen the most clearly in FIGS. 2 and 3, the half-element 23 associated with the spar 5 is not rigidly connected to the spar 5 but rather is suspended from the spar 5 by way of a retaining strip in the form of a short, flexible strap segment 27. The strap segment 27 is secured by a retaining screw to the spar 5, which is in the form of a bracing tube into which an embedded nut 31 (FIG. 2) is inserted and which is engaged by the screw 29.

[0021] As is to be seen the most clearly in FIGS. 3 to 6, flat retaining elements 33 which may be engaged with associated opposite retaining elements 35 on the opening edge 7 of the wall element 17 of the pocket 3 when the pocket 3 is closed extend from both sides of the point of application of the strap segment 27 on the spar 5.

[0022] As is to be seen the best in FIGS. 3 to 6, the tie strip 11 is lengthened so as to extend into the interior of the pocket 3 in order to form a pull-out cord 39 anchored to the inner end 37 for the purpose of extraction of the life jacket pack 19 (FIG. 6). FIG. 3 shows that the pull-out cord 39 forms a coil 41 inside the pocket 3 which encircles the life jacket pack not shown in FIG. 3, so that the life jacket pack 19 surrounded by the coil 41 is extracted from the pocket 3 when the latter is opened by way of the tie strip 11 and the pull-out cord 39, by pulling on the grip loop 15 of the opening strip 13.

[0023]FIG. 2 illustrates a range of 90° of the angles of the directions of extraction in which the grip loop 15 of the opening strip 13 may be pulled in order to effect definite opening of the closure device of the pocket 3. The range of angles extends 45° above and 45° below the horizontal seat plane designated as 45. FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate manual operation of the grip loop 15 in the lower (FIG. 4) and upper (FIG. 5) portion of the range of angles. As is to be seen, the seat passenger has available to him virtually any desired options for opening, so that the life jacket pouch may be opened rapidly in an emergency without concern for possible consequences. 

1. A life jacket pouch in the form of a pocket (3) situated below the seating surface of an aircraft passenger seat, with wall elements (17) movable in relation to each other which may be fastened in proximity to each other along an opening edge (7) of the pocket (3) by means of a closure device, which has at least one pair of retaining elements for the purpose of generating a closing force acting between the wall elements on the opening edge (7), which force may be overcome for the purpose of opening the pocket (3) by means of a manually operated opening strip (13), which has a tie strip (11) acting on the pair of retaining elements, characterized in that at least one pair of retaining elements has a press-stud fastener (21, 23) and wherein the tie strip (11) has an opening (25) through which the press-stud fastener (21, 23) extends.
 2. The life jacket pouch as claimed in claim 1, wherein one half-element (23) of the press-stud closure (21, 23) is connected to the forward spar (5) of the seat extending in the direction transverse to that of the seat and the other half-element (21) is fastened to the wall element (17) on the opening edge (7) of the wall element (17) of the pocket (3) in the proximity of the spar (5) when the pocket (3) is closed.
 3. The life jacket pouch as claimed in claim 2, wherein one half-element (23) of the press-stud closure is movably connected to the spar (5).
 4. The life jacket pouch as claimed in claim 3, wherein the movable connection of one half-element (23) to the opening edge to the spar (5) is in the form of a short, flexible strap segment (27) suspended from the spar (5), on the free end of which strap segment (27) the respective half-element (23) is secured.
 5. The life jacket pouch as claimed in claim 4, wherein a wall element of the pocket (3) is mounted in the area of its opening edge below the spar (5) and wherein flat retaining elements (33) are mounted on the spar (5) on both sides of the flexible strap segment (27) supporting the half-element (23), such flat retaining elements at the opening edge (7) of the spar (5) acting in conjunction with the opposite half-elements (35) situated on the accessible other wall element (17) of the pocket (3) for configuration of the fastening.
 6. The life jacket pouch as claimed in one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the tie strip (11) of the opening strip (13) is lengthened beyond the opening (25) through which the press-stud fastener (21, 23) extends into the interior of the pocket (3) and its lengthened part forms a pull-out cord (39) for extraction of a life jacket pouch (19) present in the pocket (3).
 7. The life jacket pouch as claimed in one of claims 4 to 6, wherein the movable connection of one half-element (23) of the press-stud closure to the strap segment (27) forming the press-stud closure with the spar (5) is connected by a screw connection (29, 31) to the spar (5) of the seat in its end area opposite the half-element (23). 